This page contains some basic information about voices, visions and other unusual sensory perceptions. If you feel you know little about the experience of hearing voices or seeing visions, it’s a good place to start. However if you already know the basics and would like some more detailed information, check out the ‘About Voices‘ and ‘Personal Experiences‘ sections.

What Are Voices & Visions?

When we talk about voices and visions, we simply mean someone is hearing, seeing or sensing something that others around them aren’t. These experiences can include all five senses, hearing, sight, smell, taste and touch. These experiences can occur in one sense at a time (hearing a voice, for example, or smelling something), but they can also happen in combination.

For some, these experiences can be comforting. For example, someone who is lonely may really value a voice that becomes a trusted confidant. A person who has recently lost someone they care about may benefit from talking to them at the end of the day, or smelling their perfume/aftershave. Others find these experiences to be a source of inspiration. Authors, for example, sometimes talk about how the characters can come to life and write the story for them. However, for some people these voices and visions can be extremely distressing – criticising, threatening or causing confusion.

How Common Is It?

Statistics vary, but it’s generally accepted that between 3 and 10% of the population hear voices that other people don’t. If you include one off experiences (like hearing someone call your name when you’re out shopping, or feeling your phone vibrate in your pocket) this figure goes up to 75%. So, having at least one experience of hearing or seeing something that others around you don’t is incredibly common. Those that have never had this experience are in the minority.

A number of famous and important people (past and present) have experience of hearing or seeing things that other people don’t. Without these people, the world would be a very different place. This list of famous people who have talked or written about hearing voices includes: Gandhi, Socrates, Joan of Arc, Freud, Anthony Hopkins, Philip K Dick, John Frusciante, Carlos Santana, Robert Schumann, John Forbes Nash, Zoe Wannamaker and Charles Dickens.

What’s It Like?

We’re all unique, so it’s unsurprising that voices and visions can be equally individual in terms of their identity, content, interpretation and impact. The following gives a brief overview. If you don’t recognise your experience here, that doesn’t mean you’re ‘weird’ or ‘unusual’.

Voices

Some people hear voices talking when no-one is around. These could be like the voices of people they know, or complete strangers. They might hear many voices, or just one. Voices can shout, whisper, be clear or muffled. They can speak in sentences or say single words. These voices can be male, female, genderless, old or young. Sometimes they have names, but not always. Voices can speak constantly (24/7), but they can also utter occasional words or phrases. People can hear other types of sounds too, including knocking, rustling, crying, screaming or music.

Some voices can be positive – providing the support and encouragement someone needs to get through the day. Other voices can be confusing, perhaps echoing thoughts or repeating strange phrases. Some voices can be very frightening, saying things that are critical, threatening or commanding. Voices can claim to have great power and knowledge, which can sometimes leave the voice-hearer feeling scared and powerless. Some voices can leave a person feeling very vulnerable and exposed (e.g. hearing a crowd of people jeering at you, or discussing intimate details of your life).

Visions

Some people see things that others don’t. These visions can be very clear and realistic, but they can also include fuzzy shapes, shadows and beams of light. Some people see the voices that they hear, others see insects or spiders. For some, the visions are very complex (like entering into another world). For others, the visions sit alongside their everyday world (an added box, person or animal for example). Sometimes, it can seem as if people or objects are changing shape. Their faces may turn to stone, they may be surrounded by a coloured aura or, for example, their eyes may change colour. As with voices, these visions can be reassuring, funny, frightening or distracting.

Smells

Some people smell things that remind them of their past. This could be something nice, like a loved one’s perfume/aftershave or a favourite food.

Sometimes people smell things that remind them of a particularly traumatic experience. For example, someone who survived a house fire may smell smoke when they feel anxious. Someone who was hurt by someone wearing a particular scent may, sometimes, smell this when there is no-one there to account for it. This can be extremely frightening, especially if they don’t recognise that this sensory experience comes from the past.

For others, the smell isn’t linked to a particular memory or traumatic event. For example, some people smell gas, burning or rotting food. These smells can feel very real and leave them fearing for their safety.

Taste

It can be difficult for someone to know that they’re tasting something that others can’t – unless they get someone else to try it too. This can make taste experiences particularly difficult to deal with. Some people get a strong bitter taste in their food or drink and, understandably, start to worry that there is something wrong with it. This can lead people to worry that they are being poisoned, or that someone is tampering with their food. Others have taste sensations when they are not eating. This might be when they are hearing a voice, watching a TV programme or thinking about something. These taste sensations can be pleasant (e.g. chocolate or a favourite food), but they can also be unnerving or unpleasant (e.g. something bitter or metallic).

Feeling (touch)

Some people can feel things on their skin when there doesn’t seem to be anything there. They might feel something crawling over their skin, tickling them or pushing them. Sometimes people feel something underneath their skin, and this can lead them to feel really worried about what is happening to their body.

Understandably these experiences can be very confusing and frightening. It’s not as simple as this, though. For others, these experiences can be reassuring. Someone who feels lonely and hears a reassuring voice may feel comforted if they feel a hand on their shoulder. They might interpret it as a sign that the voice is trying to support them.

Why Do People Hear Voices

There are lots of different theories and ideas to explain why people hear voices or see visions. These include:

A special gift or sensitivity

Trauma or adverse life experiences

Dissociation

Spiritual experiences

Biochemical (e.g. excess dopamine)

Paranormal experiences

Emotional distress

Physical health problems

Cognitive error (misattribution of ‘internal speech’)

Individual difference

The truth is that we do not know why people hear voices or see visions. As the experience is so diverse, it’s likely that there are a number of different explanations. Whilst this can be frustrating for those who feel confused and would like a simple answer or some certainty, it means that the most important explanation is the one that the voice-hearer themselves finds useful. It is important not to impose your own belief on someone else’s experience – this is fundamental to the Hearing Voices Network approach. Rather than providing a dogmatic view of voice-hearing, we recognise and celebrate a festival of explanations.

Whatever someone believes about their experiences, the most important thing is to find ways of dealing with that belief and finding some sense of power, control and hope within it.

Is Recovery Possible?

At the Hearing Voices Network we use the word recovery to mean ‘living the life you choose, not the life others choose for you’ (whether those others are family, friends, workers or voices). Many people who hear voices simply don’t need to recover – they are already living lives that they love. The voices might enhance their wellbeing, or their experiences may simply not detract from it.

For those who have particularly overwhelming experiences that lead them into the mental health services, recovery can feel like a distant dream. The good news is that people can, and do, find ways to deal with (and recover from) distressing voices. Perhaps more importantly, people can also recover from the situations that can make voices and visions so hard to deal with. Many people who recover continue to hear voices. Sometimes these voices change during the recovery process (being an ally, rather than an attacker). Other times these voices become quieter, less intrusive or even disappear altogether. Others find that the voices stay the same, but that they are no longer ruled by them. They feel stronger and more able to choose whether to listen to the voices or not.

We have witnessed many amazing journeys of recovery in the Hearing Voices Network. These journeys are, by their very nature, very individual. However, these journeys have led us to believe that no matter how overwhelmed or distressed the person is by their experiences (or whatever labels they have collected throughout their time in the mental health system) – recovery IS possible.

243 responses to “Basic Information About Voices & Visions”

Thank god for your website. I’ve been hearing muffled conversations when theres no one even in the house, feeling that some things crawling on me when there’s nothing, and I see dark shapes once in awhile. I thought I was insane or something, but this helped. My mom said I did strange, disturbing things when I was asleep, like just sit up in my bed all night. Does that have anything to do with it?

Hi Helen, I’m glad you’ve found our website useful. Sometimes it’s just good to know that you’re not alone in all this. I’m not sure if what you hear/feel is linked to your experiences when you’re asleep – everyone’s different, so there’s no hard and fast rules. Have you noticed anything that seems to trigger these experiences or do they seem to occur randomly? I hope you check out our Getting help and support page so you can find someone to talk to about these things.

i am 29 male and have recently heard voices mostly they are aggressive towards me an my world,they have ruined my life in ways but i am getting it back together piece by piece. firstly id like to say how many people and services have helped me a lot and family have been here so i am lucky. secondly i am mixed opinion on what causes them and wether they are spirits or paranormal, im sure science isnt advanced enough to get it yet and i know its not just an illness i am certain its a gift eg we can hear or hack into another wave length or similar, i have 1 voice who has been 3 times and told me 3 things and instantly they happened and it wasnt my imagination as i would of never thought these incidents up,so i am sure in some cases voices are something we cant explain, anyone feel free to drop me an email for a chat anytime as it is interesting to hear others beliefs and opinions etc take care everyone and keep an open mind as we could be enlightened ones and not all sick like most believe.peace and love to you all

yea i no where you are coming from i was told when i was 4/5 years old i had second sight but now in my 50,s i have been told i have border line persanalty disorder wich im being treated for and i still hear and see people its not as scary for me .

I also had a very aggressive voice advising me to not date a person he I believe it was a he told me what my consequences would be if I did and I tell u not that it was a right everything that was said happened but at the time I thought I’m just worrying because I’m a very very paranoid person and so decided to go with my heart

I’ve had a creature of sorts follow me around and talk to me since I was maybe 12? I have seen things since I was about 4 or 5 years old but quickly learned that this was not a normal behavior and kept quiet about it.

The creature (reptilian of sorts, though can change form) isn’t really threatening, but maybe because I’ve known him for so long. I can go weeks without hearing or seeing him, and sometimes it’s constant. I rarely see him full-on in reality. It’s hard to explain, but it’s like if your thoughts are half-way brought into reality. You can see it, but you can’t. You can hear it, but you can’t. There have been times where I have seen him fully, felt him touch me, heard him clearly, but those times are rare.

He can be really harsh but not in an unbearable way. He shows me life though a very aggressive and negative way… that has a very clear, positive, and valid point. ie asking me why I don’t just punch someone in the face and expecting me to give a good reason why I SHOULDN’T. (I get chewed out for being snarky) He never encourages me to be a terrible person, he wants me to grow. He just has a really odd way to go about it. Sometimes he can be an utter shit and makes fun of me, but it isn’t threatening. He makes sure I face problems head on, not avoid them. He can be super annoying, but not necessarily a negative thing in my life.

Hi there. Thanks for sharing your experiences here. Many people find it’s not the experience itself that causes the problem, but the way we feel about it / understand it. It sounds like you’ve got a really helpful way of using this experience to help, not hinder you. If you ever find it harder to deal with or make sense of what he says, or just want to talk with someone about it, please do. It’s sad that we feel we have to keep quiet about things that are out of the ‘normal’ range of things, but talking with others who don’t judge you can really help.

Glad i’m not the only one thought I was going insane, everyday i’ll hear someone call my name directly behind me when i’m out but when I look back literally no one is there, also I hear random voices or noises when i’m at home alone, can be freaky at times, or ill see things move or something just at the side of me but when I look its gone. Its the same with smells, the other day when I was home alone I went to stand up and there was a strong smell of some perfume similar to coconut and then it was gone and no one in my house has perfume. i’m 18 now and this has been happening for the past 2 years, id say it scares me but it doesn’t cause I’m into the whole paranormal stuff, just thought I share my experiences.

All my life I have experienced odd things, the fondest memory i have is from the age 6 an apparition of a man was standing by my bed, I could hear him clearly calling out the phrase Niecie mesie, and saying I didnt do this. I was scared that I blocked him out. At the age of 24 I saw a picture of this man in my sisters photo album. I was told this was my uncle who killed him self when I was just 18 months old and that he had a nick name for me which was niecie mesie.
When I was 28 my father past away and I was having it rough, I heard his voice tell me ” watch him closely. over and over again I was hearing it for about a good hour. I tried to ignore it but I couldnt. That night my boyfriend of three years left me.
I hear random things, colors, numbers, dates, names, I have even seen things that have not happened but this is not as common.
One example of this is back in 1996 I was with a bunch of friends walking down the road I stopped and stared at this brick wall. my friends were all there saying my name but i was in a trance so they say, but I saw a red sports car speeding down the road and slammed into this wall. Just an hour later walking back home there it was this red car mangled by the wall.
Just last week I was working with this guy I like alot, as we stood near each other I was hearing march, march ,march 16th I couldnt ignore this it was so loud in my head that without hesitation I turned and looked at this guy and said ” is your birthday im March?” he replied yeah it is. I wanted to just keep my mouth shut but no my words just kept coming. I then wanted to ask if it was the 16th but instead I said is it in the teens, he said yes thats when I said is ti the 16th, I think I might have spooked him and a few other coworkers. Some have called me a stalker others just call me weird.
Please if anyone can help me please please comment back.
This guy is like my happiness when he is around he puts a smile on my face. my heart races, the butterflies swim in my stomach like the fish in the sea. How does one explain how these things happen

Hi Sherri. That sounds quite difficult to manage, having a sense of things that you can’t quite explain – but also having to deal with other people’s reactions to it. Making sense of it isn’t easy, but do you have anyone you can talk to who will listen to you?

I spouted out no it was on a Sunday that my grandma in law had passed away because my partner came upstairs to tell me she had passed away on Monday and someone shouted in my head “No she passed on the Sabbath day because that’s what she would have wanted as she was a very Christian lady who fellow shipped every Sunday at church. It was sad because we wanted to visit her at the mc millon hospice as she was ready to pass away that was on Friday but we took the decision not to go because we was unsure when the last coach time would bring us back home the same day as we had a babysitter for that day only

i keep seeing stuff in my uncles house such as figures of a man running down the hall i also keep hearing voices and footsteps if anyone funny thing is my grandpa died there years ago if anyone else is experiencing things please make me feel better by telling me so

i sometimes hear different voices as in if i was watching a tv show i would hear the result of the show in my head i never really cared too much but today was more extrordinary i was watching spain play tahiti and it was 4-0 to spain i had a bet on as i do and then suddenly in a very faded out foreign voice (im irish) i heard the voice saying ten nil spain as the game went on and spain kept scoring goals i start thinking please dont be ten nil please dont be ten nil cause the game is in live play so that meaning the 10 nil result hasnt happened yet freaks me out, they won 10 nil in the end . have you ever heard of anything like this before

Hi James. I can understand why that would have freaked you out. I’ve heard (and met) people who have what they would call an acute sensitivity or awareness for things. I’ve also met people who hear voices who predict things that sometimes come true. The challenge for these people, in my experience, is working out whether the voices have special knowledge, whether they’re reacting to their own intuition/gut instinct or whether it’s a co-incidence/chance. Everyone is different, though, and it can be combination of these. Have you got anyone to talk to about this?

I hear 3 voices a girl , mother and father . Mother name is nancy
Father is name Robert . I don’t here them any more, but the girl
Talked to me every day and night. I also here there voice strong of
Noise of moving cars.

My voices are of mostly family, my father, mother, and sister. I hear my mom crying, my dad rages and says NASTY things of how much of a disappointment I am , likewise with my sister. It makes it hard to be around them because no matter how much they tell me that they love me I can’t help but always think that what the voice versions in my head of them says is right.

When my psychosis is really bad I hear the voice of someone who hates everything about me. I’ve been an alcoholic for about 10 years and unfortunately got addicted to amphetamines just over a month ago. i KNOW they both spell disaster for a severe psychosis but it bothers me most that the voices I hear are my family and they are ruthless and make it hard to be around them, thinking that maybe the voice is what they really think of me or what I think THEY think of me. , but in reality they are soft spoken kind hearted people that have only been supportive in my recovery. they are amazing people.

Does anyone have any other ideas of why I have these specific types of voices? I was clean for 7 days (in hospital) . the voices stopped around the 5th day. but as soon as I got home and went for a walk BOOM it came back instantly.
I am staying away from all the bad stuff in hopes that this psychosis will go away because I can’t take much more of these hateful voices , I walk with my head down and feel very awkward when socializing and think that everyone knows all the bad things I’ve done in my life and criticize me for it.
I feel like such a piece of crap since they started. Is there any techniques I can do that will make them go away or if not at least make them be a little more positive??
I’m going to get into a rehabilitation center to stay clean asap and talk to my doctor about getting medication today.
Thanks to anyone who can help me!!
-Ryan

Hi ryan, I just read your comments and because your experience is so like my own I wanted to reply to you, I cant give you any answers as to why this happens to you but maybe I can give you some hope. I got addicted to speed 2 and half years ago, for about the first 9 months I started hearing voices, I couldnt work out what was going on, it was about a year into my addiction/phycosis that the voices became clear as 2 sometimes 3 women, one was my sister, I beleived they could read my thought’s and that I could talk to them with my mind, to start with they were so horrible, and would insult me criticise me, keep me awake at night basically I felt like I was being bullied 24/7, I have named my voices aand actually believed real people were some how doing this to me, so I avoided these people in real life. Over the year of living with my voices I have kinda got usec to them they are no longer horrible but have supported me through hard times they are almost like friends although I would rather not have them sometimes othertimes I listen to what they have to say and quite often find they offer good advice.
I am off the speed now and its been 4 months clean, I still have my phycosis/voices but im in control and strong enough to deal with them. I am starting new meds today so hopefully they might be gone totally before long.
I hope you are in a good place today, and hope you know your not alone. X

I was wondering, I often have a feeling of a spider crawling across the back of my neck. But I know that there isn’t one. I sometimes even swat my neck and there is nothing there. Is there any explaination to that?

Hi Adam, everyone’s different – but having the sensation of something crawling on you when nothing is there is pretty common. It’s hard to say what causes it, but have you noticed any patterns to when it happens? Some people get these sensations when they’re in a particular emotional state (e.g. stressed out) and it can be a form of being really aware of your body and surroundings, so that small sensations get amplified. Others experience things like this when they’re feeling vulnerable. Others find that they’re naturally sensitive to sensations and often find themselves feeling like things are touching/crawling on them when something like a hair or fibre on their jumper touches them. The important thing is what you think might be happening, and how it affects you. When this happens, have you found anything that helps to make it easier to deal with (or reduces it)?

I have had numerous experiences all my life. I once visited my mother in law in Canada and heard a choir singing all night. Next morning at breakfast I asked what the church across the street was called and was told there was no church in that area. I then mentioned the choir I heard through the night and she told me her house was a choir masters house abt 100 years ago.

I was once travelling and heard a real voice tell me 3 times to come off the vehicle. After the third time hearing the voice I responded in my heart saying if you want me to come down then make the vehicle stop. The driver pulled into the next gas station. I came down and 15 minutes later the vehicle had an accident and all petished.

I was once travelling to another country to search for a long lost uncle. The night before the trip I was sitting in my living room when suddenly I was seeing a vision of the country to I was going to. In the vision I saw that I met him. It was like watching fuzzy tv. I traveled the next day and the random hotel I ended up staying in was directly opposite his house.

ive been hearing voices for about a year two to be exact and one is bad and one is to mental to understand very well sometimes they take me over and im a whole different person its weird my parents know now and they haven’t done anything to help so im trying on my own this site really helps thnx

Hi Lauryn. Really glad to hear that this site helps – it’s hard to deal with this stuff on your own. Apart from your parents, is there someone you can talk to? We can try and help you find someone if you email us. It’s really important that people take you seriously when you’re struggling, and that you get the support you need to deal with difficult experiences like this.

I am glad I saw this website. I have been hearing voices sometimes with dreams. With me, the things turn to happen with friends and family members. Even sometimes I hear when people talk about me and when I see them the next day I find out they had said or aboutsay the same thing I have heard them say

I am bipolar. Since a small child I have often had odd experiences I cannot explain. The most troubling symptoms for me are smell hallucinations. Sometimes these can be pleasant, as in smelling roses or lilac, but more likely is a really disgusting smell almost like rotting flesh. When this happens I am really disturbed by it. I have had medical checks and nothing is amiss.

Another disturbing problem is the sensation that something is crawling all over my skin (like spiders). Also the occasional feeling that there is an evil presence in my house.

Actually I never tell anyone about these because I find they do not listen. My psychiatrist simply dismissed the smelling bad things.

Hi Nettie, I’m really sorry your psychiatrist dismissed your experiences. Smelling things and feeling things that others don’t can be really intense. We make sense of the world by our senses, so if we smell something rotting then it can trigger all kinds of instinctive feelings (that are all really natural under the circumstances). Have you every thought about going to a Hearing Voices Group? Although they’re called ‘Hearing Voices Groups’, many members have other sensory experiences too (like you’ve described). It’s one place where you should feel validated and understood – which is a good step towards making sense of why it’s happening and what you can do to deal with it. I’m glad you could post about it here

Thank you very much for your thoughtful response. I have never really thought about going to a hearing voices meeting. I rarely hear voices, and thought these meetings were specific to this particular hallucination. Maybe it would be comforting to attend such a meeting with other people with similar experiences. One often feels a bit at odds with the world. These experiences I never really talk about are not always terrifying, sometimes they can be quite beautiful. A pity not to be able to share.

I have started hearing tapping, drumming, or knocking. I’m not sure what it is but it just started a few weeks ago and now it’s gotten pretty loud… It’s been bothering me so much. My body is so used to the beat that it starts doing too with tapping with my finger, hands, or foot. It’s just so weird that it started a few weeks ago all of a sudden.

Hi Luis, that sounds really difficult – especially as it started all of a sudden. Do you remember what was going on in your life at the time? Sometimes people start having experiences like this when they’re particularly stressed, under pressure or exhausted. For others it’s not so easy to see a reason, though. Have you found any ways to reduce its volume, or noticed any patterns to when it starts or gets louder. If you haven’t already tried this, some people find it helpful to keep a brief diary or record to try and make sense of it with someone they trust to about it.

I’ve been hearing voices since I was 8 years old, I’m 20 now, but it only happens when it’s quiet in the room, the voice usually always shouts. Sometimes it makes sense and sometimes it doesn’t. When I first start hearing the voice I jump because the loudness of it startles me. It’s usually always a mans voice. I don’t understand why I hear this and why it only happens when it’s quiet. I haven’t told anyone because I’m afraid they’ll think I’m crazy. Sometimes I play music or something, anything to avoid the quiet because I get scared of the voices coming back.

Hi Katie, thanks for sharing that. You’re not alone in hearing voices since your youth – we meet lots of people who describe similar experiences. As you’ve probably gathered from this website, hearing voices doesn’t mean you are crazy – but it makes sense you worry about that because there is still a lot of stigma around about it. You might want to check out this video made my young people who hear voices: http://www.voicecollective.co.uk/about/about_vcgallery.html. It’s aimed at younger people than yourself, but it might help you to see some positive messages. Finding someone to talk to about your voices sounds really important – it can help you make sense of why you might be hearing this man’s voice and find ways of dealing with it. You can try a Hearing Voices Group or check out our Getting Help & Support page.

I found this really interesting, I hear voices when it goes quiet at night and I’m lay in bed awake, I find them strangely comforting, listening to them often helps me drift off, it’s like I’m listening in to random conversations and just catching the odd sentence. I’m not scared or bothered by them in the slightest. I wouldn’t want to be without them to be honest.

Where to begin, its strange I really really need an answer. Every now and then places I pass through I have visions in my head of events some tragic some not I experience a wide range of emotions with some places and can’t explain why, I also see dark shadows in some places sometimes one but mostly they come in three’s I’m now concerned it’s something more dark and sinister. I don’t hear voices maybe once in awhile I have never taken drugs but I do work the night shift I did however have a very near death experience when I was very very young.

Hi Tony, I’m afraid it’s impossible for anyone to give a definite answer to what’s going on for you – although I’m guessing there are lots of different perspectives people here might be able to offer. Some people find that they are very sensitive to energies of places, others find that their own emotional state can trigger experiences that seem tied to particular places. Have you ever kept a diary/record of these experiences to try and make sense of them?

You mentioned being concerned that it might be something more dark and sinister? Can you say why that is? Is it that the experiences have changed in some way, or something else? You might want to check out a Hearing Voices Group or the Spiritual Crisis Network to talk with someone about what’s happening in person to help you come to some understanding of it that is helpful to you.

hi im really scared. iv been hearing voices for around the last 10 years but in the last year they have becomve much more commanding (there was a period before when the voices would tell me to hurt myself but i was well supported byt the early intervention team) i moved away from there and did my best to get ‘out of the system’. i have no support hear and i dont know what to do. i was resisting the voices until they hurt my friend and put him into hospital and now my only option is to do what the voices say so that they dont hurt my friends. i am directly responsible for my friend being hurt and i am scared to leave the house and i dont want to see a doctor becuase if i take antipsychotics and i cant hear the voices properly then they will hurt my friends becuase im not doing what they ask. even thouhg i cant here. i am so scared of even posting this. sorry.

Hi Clo, thanks for posting – even though it sounds like it was really hard to do that. It sounds like a really tough position to be in – to be struggling with the voices, but worrying that if you can’t hear them properly and don’t do what they say your friends will be at risk. That’s a huge responsibility to have. It sounds like you could really do with some support to figure out a way through this. If you feel able to, can you email us at info@hearing-voices.org and let us know what area you live in so we can see whether there are any groups or useful agencies near you. One thing I just wanted to mention is that, in my experience, some voices can be great at claiming responsibility for things that happen – even when they don’t have the power to cause it. It can be a way of controlling someone – especially if the person feels responsible/guilty because of it. I can understand if the risk to even think about this feels too huge right now – but trying to puzzle it out with someone could be really useful. You don’t have to work this out alone. I’m not sure if this Rufus May article will be helpful, but it may be worth reading.

For those of you hearing mean voices, I have found that (when it happened to me) it was just my repressed emotions/beliefs resurfacing so that i could let them go. These voices got really loud out of nowhere and at first it hurt my feelings because I still believed what they were saying was true. Then I realized they would speak in a variety of different characters and would always speak about what I was focusing on. Observing the voices and my own thoughts and accepting that they were false has really helped me to let go of the repressed beliefs and the emotions that came along with them.

My symptoms are quite different but please could anyone tell me what’s wrong. I have people come into my head everything couple of seconds throughout the day I don’t know who they are, what they are doing or were they are it comes and goes that quick but makes me feel like I can’t breath, going to be sick, legs go like jelly and generally feel like I’m on a different planet

That sounds really confusing, Melissa – especially as it happens so quick you don’t have a chance to get your bearings or make sense of what is happening. Have you noticed any pattern to when it happens, or does it seem random? Do you have any ways of grounding yourself after it happens, when you feel like you’re on a different planet. That sounds quite disorienting, so having some strategies for feeling back in your body/in the world sounds good. Everyone’s experiences are different – but would you consider talking to someone about it to try and make some sense of it? Check out our getting help and support section for some starting points.

I am not a religious person. I don’t believe in a heaven, hell, ghosts, etc. I don’t have any medical/mental illness. My home life is good. I’ve always trusted my gut feelings and a lot of times they are accurate.

I purchased my place about 13 years a go. I have been hearing movements and other sounds for years. I hear voices off and on, but lately the voices seem to be more common.

Usually I hear one word muffled voices. Those are rare. They don’t scare me, but I do have to strain to try to understand what was said.

A little after my six year old was born I heard the words “Shut Up!” come from his room. It was a man’s voice. That startled me because my infant son and I were the only ones home.

A couple nights a go I kept hearing a woman saying “D G” over and over again in a soft voice.

Today I heard a man’s voice coming from the back of my house. The voice had a strong southern accent. The voice sounded confused, but muffled.

For years people outside my house and even my husband and daughter has mentioned hearing things from my house. (I had a pastor doing stump removals in my back yard. He told me he thought someone was in our house because the noises were so loud. He seemed very concerned and did not want to come back.) I try to write everything off as sleep depravation or I come up with another explanation depending on what took place. I don’t want people to think we are crazy, so I come up with explanations all the time.

I don’t feel threatened, but at the same time I am concerned.

My 17 year old daughter keeps telling me that she gets a weird feeling just about every morning about 2:00 – 4:00 a.m. She says she feels like someone is watching her. I keep telling her it’s because her body is telling her to go to the bathroom. My daughter tries really hard to stay away from the house. She says she gets more rest staying with her friends.

I’m 12 and I hear things a lot I don’t know what it means and it’s not voices but more like sounds? Sometimes it is just a small crack from like a glass but then it can go to a loud siren but its not there.I see things crawling across the floor like people that are dead

Hi Savannah, hearing sounds rather than voices is pretty common too. They can be loud, quiet or they can change in volume. Seeing things crawling across the floor sounds quite scary … have you found someone to talk to about it? Voice Collective – a project just for children and young people who hear voices – has a page on telling other people that might be useful. It’s really important to speak with someone, though – especially if it’s something that is worrying you at all. You might want to check out their animation too (it’s in their art gallery).

I’ve been hearing voices in my head since last year (really negative and condescending voices that are not mine ) There is a woman and a man and they both sound evil and demonic. Not only that, but they know exactly how to annoy me and which buttons to press – they even say things I am about to think and can copy what my mind is saying. Is it some future demonic force watching me all the time? Reading my mind? The voices sometimes even come through other people around me. Am I going insane?

Hi John. I’m sorry to hear you’re hearing voices that are so derogatory. One person I met, some time ago, said that sometimes ‘what we fear, we hear’, referring to how the voices he heard had this knack of saying the very thing that would make him feel most disturbed or exposed. There are lots of ways of making sense of voices that do this – from them being external entities to being linked to our own inner feelings and concerns in an intensified way. You might want to check out “Living With Voices” or our personal experience section to hear about some other people who have experiences like this and see if it helps you make sense of your own experiences. It might also be really helpful to get some help and support (this doesn’t mean you’re ‘insane’ – just that emotional support through times like this is really helpful, and talking things over with someone you trust can help in the sense-making process).

Also, if you’re based in Australia you might want to check out HVN Australia too – to find some local support.

Hi, just stumbled onto your site after reading an interesting piece about auditory hallucinations in the Indy. I’ve been reading through the many different experiences on the site and find them very interesting. I just wanted to add some experiences of my own. When I was younger, up until about the age of 16, I had a number of bizarre hallucinations. The most recurring ones would be when lying in bed I would hear windows in my street being knocked on in turn approaching my bedroom window, a knock at my window then it continued down the street and back again. In my head I was convinced if the knocking stopped at my window then something was going to come in and get me! It was rather terrifying. I would also often be lying in bed and start to feel the bed shaking violently. These were quite common for me growing up. I very often sensed an extremely sinister figure standing at my bedroom door which was horrible. I also used to hear voices calling my name from time to time. The weirdest hallucinations I ever had though were one offs, the most vivid and bizarre being one time I was in the bathroom and looked downstairs, the staircase had become a spiral stone thing like something out of a castle, and I could see flickering torches coming up the stairs and hear angry voices. I locked the bathroom door and could hear and feel the door being violently banged on. For some reason I felt that pressing a towel against the door would stop whoever getting in. I was also convinced they were coming up the toilet and kept flushing the chain. It was like a waking nightmare. I shouted frantically for my dad who shouted up what’s wrong which made the hallucination stop. I was about 14/15 and it was the most pants-wettingly scary experience of my life. My dad just thought I was making it up. Sorry for the long post but haven’t thought about this stuff for years, I’m 37 now and have had nothing like since thankfully. Good luck to everyone still suffering these things and hope you find good coping mechanisms.

i want to know what it is that i feel i don’t have i mark or anything but i sometimes feel like iv been to hell and back i hear things voices that tell me to do things i do them and i feel as if something grabs me and then now at this tie a friend said i’v been to hell and back and that just brought a feeling to me picketers in my head of hell. i got these feeling and voices when i committed to being a satanist two my best friends

That sounds like a really intense experience – one that you really want to understand. It sounds like its left you feeling out of control at times, and – maybe – worried what it’s all about. There are lots of different ways of making sense of voices (including those that tell you to do things) so it could be really helpful to get some support or join a group to have some conversations with people to help you deal with some of this. Whatever the cause of the voices, if you want to find ways of coping with them you might want to check out Coping with Voices on our site, or some strategies from Voice Collective.

Hi raj here in 23 year old I felt in love with a girl who is one of my friends when I proposed her she rejected me i remember her at any situation of my life I know that its all over but im hearing a voice inside me(im sure that its my voice)that always says that she is your don’t worry she will come back to you but practically no scope for that but my inner voice saying very confidently what is that im totally confused.
Reply me

Hi Raj, that sounds like a really difficult situation – both being rejected by someone you have fallen in love with, and then hearing a voice (your voice) that tells you she’ll come back to you. It might feel hard to make sense of the contradiction … or find a way of accepting what she has told you herself (as much as it hurts). Whether it’s voices, thoughts, hopes or feelings … these situations are really confusing at the best of times. Do you have any ideas why you might hear a voice telling you not to worry .. does it fit in with anything you, yourself, are feeling … or is it the complete opposite (or somewhere in between)? It would be great if you could find someone to talk through some of your feelings and experiences. Is there anyone around you that you think would listen?

Well I’ve been having all five senses. I hear voices sometimes a lot at a time, there mostly sad. Angry. Happy, I almost ended my life a few hours ago. I tried 5 times. The voice that was there in the begging of my depression, he was scary at first, I seen shadows sometimes full sized of a animal or a person. I’ve seen so many places he shows me, I hear screaming sometimes when he shows me places that are horrible. He forces me to watch my own death over an over in my head. I mostly hear him telling me things that I know or hardly understand. But sometimes he shows me beautiful places, that it makes my heart drop. He shows me planets, like I’m right there, when I close my eyes, I can hold things. When I smell things I can remember memories, some are bad some are good, but some just bring a scent that is blurry, or I’ll smell it later, it either stops me or makes me unconftable. When I taste something I make sure it doesn’t smell wrong, if it does I don’t taste it, but if I do, it gives off a gross taste, something that I can’t handle, most of my eating, I’ve been worring about my foods, sometimes drink, like water, soda. Just some I don’t trust cause of that one little taste. Touch, well I can sometimes feel hands on my back, or being poked. Or either like being hit but something hard for a minute.
I want to see why I have all five senses?
I want to know what it means? It even hurts the inside of me the voices. He sometimes just puts me down an then he forces a lot of pressure, without even talking in the inside of head. I’m in a sistuation, my life is wobbling over the edge of a building. I really need to know why.

Hi Megan, thanks for getting in touch. That sounds like so many really intense experiences it’s understandable that you need to make sense of them. You’re not alone in having experiences that happen in all five senses … but making sense of the ‘why’ is such an individual thing we can’t give any answers here. Some people find that their experiences start following a difficult or traumatic time, others feel that they are more ‘sensitive’ to different experiences or have a particular gift or ability to sense things that needs some filters. To make sense of it – and find ways of dealing with it – it can really help to speak to someone. Do you have someone you can talk to – especially when it gets hard and you feel close to suicide? Check out our Getting Help & Support pages for more ideas on this – you really don’t have to go through this alone. If you find yourself feeling unable to go on, please call someone (including the Samaritans) or ring 999. People do make sense of even the most frightening experiences. For some ideas about this, see some personal experiences of voice hearing that you might relate to.

I keep on hearing voices in my head every year.They can be musical, sexual or else. I also heard the voice of dead people or the voice of alive people as if they are dead. When I am face to face with people, I feel like they are having sex with me. When I took medications, the symptoms stop. However,this experience kept happening to me every year.

Moreover,I saw someone who was already dead and he waved at me. I used to see zombies.